Khao Phra Viharn (Preah Vihear) NP open? Times?

[henrik2000]

Hello, have you been there just now and could enter? I'm not so far from it and could go there by rental car. If you know the opening times, i'd be interested. I understand foreigners pay 400 Baht entry - if the park is open at all. Thanks!

[lostinisaan]

No idea if it's open, but I' ve never paid 400 baht to get in. A Thai driver's license, or work permit's changing all.

But if it's open again, you'll also have to pay a fee to the Cambodians, before you even go up the stairs to the temple. It was 200, or 300 baht, as far as I remember.

Norbert from Pizza 4 you in Kantharalak should know it. Google his place and give him a call. That will do the trick.

Edited December 27, 2015 by lostinisaan

[SunsetT]

Google to get lots more info: park phone # +66 81 264 8727

[DILLIGAD]

No idea if it's open, but I' ve never paid 400 baht to get in. A Thai driver's license, or work permit's changing all.

it.

Having been to quite a few national parks/ attractions recently with my W/P & D/L, I was told they no longer are accepted for reduced rate due to a fairly recent change in Government policy

[henrik2000]

Hi, thanks for your hints! I'm just a tourist and not entitled to local pricing.

But 10 days ago in Pang Sida NP the ranger asked me thoroughly if i had a Thai driving licence or somesuch and with some embarrassment took 200 instead of 20.

[henrik2000]

I could try to call, thanks for the number. I do speak a little Thai, but mai Sanuk on the phone.

[Farma]

My last visit was a month ago. You can only drive up to the carpark on the Thai side. You couldn't walk from the carpark past the crashed chopper. There's lots of razor wire on the path.

The side of the cliff is still accessible and you can walk down to see the paintings and look into Cambodia. There are also do not feed the monkey signs which weren't there on my previous visits.

There is a viewpoint overlooking the old crossing to the temple. The army will let you look through their binoculars and photograph the temple but not any military installations despite signs at the closest point saying no photos.

[henrik2000]

Pharma, thanks for the details!

[bergen]

Good info from Farma! The park used to open at 08.00 in the morning. I don't know if that has changed.

The view fro Pha Moo I Dang Cliff is nice and worth a visit imo.

Haven't seen the mokeys lately, so think they're gone..............

[SantiSuk]

NPs always seem to have been inconsistent one to another on whether it's 200 or 400 to those who claim Thai affiliation. Always worth trying the Thai license, preceded by a bit of Thai language - "I live in Thailand and pay Thai taxes" (everyone does of course - VAT is a tax).

[lostinisaan]

No idea if it's open, but I' ve never paid 400 baht to get in. A Thai driver's license, or work permit's changing all.

it.

Having been to quite a few national parks/ attractions recently with my W/P & D/L, I was told they no longer are accepted for reduced rate due to a fairly recent change in Government policy

The Tourist Police stickers on my windshield, plus my unique shirt usually do the trick. Then the so important VIP smile and whisper....

I only have to tell them that I'm chasing the dragon aeeh a chai damm damm farang.

[henrik2000]

Hello, i went there today. Farma's description is still up to date. Some additions:

• It seems the park opens from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. This is what the ticket girl told me and several locals from outside the park too. I easily got in at 7.50 and was not the first.
• I was charged 200 Baht total for 1 foreigner in 1 car. She said: "Normal price is 400, but i charge you only 200" (her English not so bad). I got a ticket that has 2 200-Baht-strips. When i gave her 500, she returned only 100. I looked at her and she said, "oh", and gave me another 200 back. There are price lists in Thai, with the numbers for foreigners in Arabic, not Thai (as in other NPs), but no English text. The soldiers/police at the gate wanted to take a picture with me, then saluted me.
• There is a decent, if viewless food court. There is also a string of wayside restaurants at the last junction just outside the park. I had a terrible rice soup in a village 20 kms before the park and next time would eat closer to the park or at the Suan Baan Lang.... (?) resort on the small road from southernmost Ubon province (ca. 25 kms far from the park entrance east of Ban Nam Yuen).
• There are also lovely shady picnic spots – all that at a nice altitude with just the right breeze. There are also a few picnic tables – the most desirable ones occupied by police and vendors, of course.
• Google Map's direction to Pha Mo I Daeng is misleading for motorists. Just follow the main road to the end.
• I get a bit tired of Thais saying "farang farang" when i pass their group. And whatever you tell me, it is not a perfectly polite word (i was politely dressed, normal casual Thai standard, and some Thais asked me to take their picture with their camera, so i didn't look offensive).
• I went there on lovable sealed country roads (not on the main road from Kantharalak). Very nice country life which looks even better if you play some slow, lazy Siriporn, Tai Orathai, Takkaten or Fon morlam. Dogs and people stand on the road without moving a bit for cars. The countryside is so much nicer than say between Ubon, KK and Udon.

Edited December 28, 2015 by henrik2000

[Bredbury Blue]

The park opens at dawn. There's quite a crowd there then to see the sun come up. It's well worth the effort. The park closes sometime around sunset. It's well worth visiting - we loved so much we went dusk and dawn the next day.

Tip: After you've been to the cliff top, when you leave and drive down the hill and drive to Kantharalak direction, you will pass a sign pointing to a Prasat (sorry I forget its name). Go see it, its about a 10 minute drive. Walk around the Prasat as its main view can't be seen from the car.

[Bredbury Blue]

^monkeys still there in October when we visited, seen below the cliff.

[Sydebolle]

To visit the temple sanctuary you must access it from the Cambodian side which requires a 4WD up the hill; don't leave the path as the area remains mined with UXOs

[henrik2000]

Hello, went there today again and entered at 5.50 a.m. The park was breathtakingly crowded and reeked of shrimp-flavored Mama Noodles - any New Year Market in Khon Kaen is serene in comparison. Got near-decapitated by out-of-control selfie-sticks and selfie-drones. Partly difficult to get to the cliff's edge because of crowds. The landscape didn't impress me as much as on the previous 8.30 a.m. visit just because of the crowds. There was no sea of mist or so, barely any mist at all. Sunrise nice of course, but perhaps not overwhelming.

This time the ticket man charged 400 Baht. I complained that on the previous day i had had to pay only 200 and showed yesterday's ticket (see my post above). He said, "what's that, that's a student ticket" and i was glad that he didn't enquire more (i really don't look like a student). The guards at the entry again took a selfie with me.

If you like monkeys, i saw them too, yes. Rice soup at the food market was too salty, but not expensive and rice soup lady extremely friendly, polite and quite anglophone.

There's also a signposted hiking trail but that would mean leaving the car exposed next to the main road in an otherwise isolated area.

Edited December 29, 2015 by henrik2000

[khwaibah]

To visit the temple sanctuary you must access it from the Cambodian side which requires a 4WD up the hill; don't leave the path as the area remains mined with UXOs

You can access the temple ONLY from the Cambodian side and you do not need a 4WD. If you wish you can drive your car over by crossing at Chong Chom then driving to the PV. fair road. Beware that Thais are not allowed to enter the site only foreigner and Cambodians. Another options to to take a very long 1 day tour from Siem reap. The driving options is about 160 km from O'Smach/Chong Chom to PV.

Edited December 29, 2015 by khwaibah

[lostinisaan]

To visit the temple sanctuary you must access it from the Cambodian side which requires a 4WD up the hill; don't leave the path as the area remains mined with UXOs

But please be aware that it could happen that they don't let your Thai wife visit the old temple. It happened many moons ago and was a thread on here.

They let the foreigner get in, but not his Thai wife from Cambodia. A sort of weird revenge, indeed.

If you really have to "access it", please be aware that there are still plenty of still intact mines around. My ex neighbor's friend in the Army once stepped on one when stationed in Kantharalak.

It would be great to know if they let Thais in, or not.

[SantiSuk]

To visit the temple sanctuary you must access it from the Cambodian side which requires a 4WD up the hill; don't leave the path as the area remains mined with UXOs

You can access the temple ONLY from the Cambodian side and you do not need a 4WD. If you wish you can drive your car over by crossing at Chong Chom then driving to the PV. fair road. Beware that Thais are not allowed to enter the site only foreigner and Cambodians. Another options to to take a very long 1 day tour from Siem reap. The driving options is about 160 km from O'Smach/Chong Chom to PV.

Or if you don't fancy taking your car into Camb, drive to the smaller Chom (/Choam) SaNgam border south of Muang Sisaket in Amphur Phusing. You cannot take your car through that border (maybe I should add "... yet", as I think someone said on ThaiV, maybe even you Madbuffalo, that there are plans to allow entry).

Then you can PM me and I'll give you the name and phone number of a reliable taxi driver (Khmer married to Thai, living at the border town) who will do a day trip to Khao Phra Vihear for you. I'm guessing it would be around 1,500 baht. He does speak a little bit of English, but better if you speak some Thai or bring a Thai with you - which would be frustrating for that person as they can't go into the temple.

Edit: This thread also had travel content in it, some of which would be relevant to anyone tripping to Khao Phra Vihear on the Thai side.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/858769-driving-from-bangkok-to-ubonstay-where-see-what/

Edit 2: PM me if you are gregarious enough to share a ride/cost. Have been meaning to do that trip from the Camby side myself. Luckily, got to see it from the Thai side when I first came to live in Amphur Kantharalak 8 years ago, before the two nations started behaving like spoilt children. I'm away in UK January 10 to 30 though.

Edited December 30, 2015 by SantiSuk